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When I was very young I developed a love for all things antique. At Christmas, when I was fourteen, my parents gave me this jug and wash basin for a gift and I was absolutely thrilled about it.

I set this up on the floor by a window where the light was flooding in through lace curtains which filtered the light in a rather dappled way. By North American standards I live in a very old house and if you look closely you can see the tiny nails in the hardwood floor which was the way it was installed so long ago. There are thousands of those tiny nails in little rows in the floors here….it makes my knees sore just thinking about the fellow who had to hammer them all! :-)

Artwork Comments

Beautiful work Holly!!!! What a lovely way to show case your antique jug and wash basin! I know how you feel for antique things, as I too have a great love of antique and or just old things, including houses! I live in a small old farm house that was built in 1930 and though we have renovated extensively, we have kept the old character of the house in tact. I’ve always felt at home in the old country style homes! Is the background one of your walls and or is it a backdrop you have added? Beautiful work and an instant fav for me! : )

Thank you Sandy! How lovely that you’ve been able to renovate an old house….it’s quite the project isn’t it? But so much fun….especially once the work is done! In older homes I’ve always felt as you’ve said here….‘at home’….and there’s just something about a place that has a history that gives it something special.

The background is one I’ve added. I set up the softbox on the floor and opened up the sides….basically just leaning it against the wall so I’d have a neutral background to start with and then I went from there.

Thank you so much K! The lovely thing about natural light is the way it can ‘play’ over the subject. It was actually the light on the floor as I was about to go down the stairs that gave me the idea for setting this up where I did. You just never know where the good light will be next! LoL

Thank you so much Gilberte! I start with a neutral background….usually grey, black or white….and then I start playing around with texture layers. Most of my backgrounds have 5 or 6 layers…some less, some more….and all at various opacities until I get the look I want. Then I start playing with filters and at that point I usually have to add light to different areas. It’s pretty much trial and error and it usually takes quite a few hours to get a background together. A challenge….but certainly one I enjoy! :-)

My house is getting on for a hundred years, so I know what you mean, but I love it and love antiques too…I furnished it in the same way…That is a beautiful ewer and bowl…it’s an unusual gift for a teenager, so you must have really interesting parents…I love the composition you’ve created…did you paint the backdrop yourself?…it’s fantastic…

Smiling here Janis…yes it was an unusual gift for a teenager and it was because I was antique mad at that point and they knew it. I was much happier reading 19th century novels or going to antique fairs than I was doing the ‘normal’ teen things….something of a square peg I think. :-D

I didn’t paint the background in the sense of using a traditional brush. It was done in PS with (counting on my fingers here) 5 texture layers…the last layer was the roses which I laid over the background but only kept hints of it. Oh…..and thank you very much!! :-)